So with
22 years of dealing with land-dependent vehicles, what compelled Trudell
to say yes to the Sea Ray position? After all, except for the fact that
they both have engines, cars and boats have nothing in common, right?
Even Trudell acknowledges that "Most people need a car for some
kind of transportation, while people choose to be a boater." Still,
the opportunity to learn about a new industry intrigued her. "I
have a voracious appetite to learn," she adds. In addition, having
spent a fair amount of time in Detroit, she'd seen and heard the
Sea Ray name often enough to know it was a major brand. "I knew
of it...but not all the ins and outs of the product," she explains.

Tied
to the question of why Trudell would want the position is the issue of
being an outsider. There are those within the boating industry who believe
that a person must be a boater or have some type of background in the
field to be successful in the marine business. Trudell gives no credence
to that, stressing that her team-oriented approach matches well with Sea
Ray's open environment, and despite being a mere three weeks into
her new position at the time of our conversation in April, she already
felt comfortable.

In fact,
she sees common ground between Sea Ray and Saturn. For example, she says,
Saturn's customers have definite expectations of what they want
in their vehicles; the same holds true for Sea Ray's buyers. Keeping
the customer loyal to the brand is another common link. The strength of
the individual dealer networks--"a really passionate group
of people within the brand," as Trudell describes them--is
yet another similarity. And related to this is the issue of timely feedback.
"At Saturn we knew every day what the customer expectations and
issues were," she explains, due to her and her executives'
close relationships with the dealers. She sees potential for applying
this strategy within Sea Ray.

As for
existing Sea Ray strategies that have met with success, Trudell plans
to continue encouraging attention to details that are valued by the customers.
As an example, she cites technology, particularly with regard to navigation
systems. Not only does this serve experienced boaters, according to Trudell,
but also new boaters, since it's "a way of getting others
into the industry." These, in turn, lead to another area where she
believes Sea Ray has strength: making sure the customer ownership experience
is truly enjoyable. She's met people who talk with pride about the
various Sea Rays they've owned through the years.

But
what about challenges? Despite countrywide concerns about a recession
and the softening of the small-boat market, Trudell remains undaunted.
"You really know the strength of your brand--brand equity--when
times aren't booming," she explains. She says the key is to
remain focused on a few fundamentals. Foremost among these is making sure
that "Sea Ray is always at the top of the shopping list."
Leading corporations cannot afford to grow comfortable and therefore fail
to grow their brands, she says. Second, Trudell believes Sea Ray needs
to continue pushing technological innovations and improving the quality
of its boats' interiors, since both affect functionality and ease
of use in the customer's eyes. And last, Trudell stresses that improving
manufacturing technology will lead to more efficient build times and even
more quality.

"Life
is a journey to me," she says--one in which she gives "200
percent." Thus begins the first step in Trudell's tenure--a
job where she sees a lot of passion and a lot of fun and hopefully no
tedium. And ultimately a journey where, when written about by future business
writers, there's no question of originating from Mars or Venus.